Secondary or storage battery



B.'FORD.

SECONDARY OR STORAGE BATTERY.

APPLTCATTON FILED 050.12, 1918.

PATENT OFFICE.

BRUCE FORD, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENSYLVANIA.

SECONDARY OR STORAGE BATTERY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Feb. 8, 192,1.

Original application filed April 14, 1916, Serial No. 91,025. Divided and this application filed December y 12, 1918. Serial No. 266,400.

To all lwhom t may concern Be it known that I, BRUCE FORD, a citizen .of the United States, and a resident of Philadelphia. in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented cerrallycapab'le of withstanding Iincidents 'of usage while comparatively inexpensive and' easy to manufacture.

- The invention will be claimed at the end hereof, but will be first described in connection with the accompanying forming part hereof and in which- Figure 1, is an elevational view, principally in section, of a battery embodying features of the'invention, and

.Fig 2', is a detached view, partly in' sec-.

tion. illustrating a modification.

The jar 1, as of glass, is provided on its bottom with three depressions 2, arranged at the points of an imaginary triangle and constituting a three-point support, so that the jar will remain steady when placed upon an uneven-support. l The jar is also provided with a-.lateral bulge 3, constituting a sight gage. Around the outside of the and near its open end is ahead or flange 5f and above the bead the outside surface of the jar is slightly beveled or contracted as at 6. When the jar is blown, which is the usual way to make a glass jar thecontracted surface at 6 above the bead 5 is true because' it is made so bypbeing blown against the mold. The cover 7 may consist of hard rubber or otliersuitable material and maybe reinforced as by depending 'ribs 8, showiras arranged in parallel pairs.

lof the cover plate .there is a depression 9,

with a hole at the bottom, which receives the filling and vent plug 10the depression acting as a funnel. The edge of the cover is turned or offset, forming a flange 11. From the cover the plates 12 and 13 depend, by means.of posts 14 and bus-bars 15. The posts 14 are secured to the cover by nuts'l and collars or enlargements 17 arranged drawings At the center on opposite sides of the covers, and the enlargements 17 may be 'tted between the ribs 8. The plates are suspended in this way clear of the bottom and walls of the cell and the separators 18 are arranged between the plates and are preferably larger than the plates to prevent connection across their edges. The bottom edge of each plate is provided with hook-like projections 19 and 20, and 21 and 22. On one set of plates, in the present instance, the negative plates, the projections 19 and 20 are comparatively near the vertical edges. On the other set of pl.ates,in the present instance the positive plates, the projections 21` and 22 are nearer to the center of the plates and are faced in opposition to the projections 19 and 20. 23 are rods lof insulating material as hard rubber engaged by the various projections and extending crosswise of the plates. These' rods are shown as of generally V- shape and as of hollow section which imparts lightness, andgthey are fitted to the hook-like projections. The rods serve to support the separators and also to mutually support and interlock the plates in such a way that they remain in proper'position and may not swing or turn about the unions of the posts 14 with the cover as a center. Where each plate is provided with two projections, as shown in Fig. 1, the plates are held against swinging even if the battery be inverted.

As shown in Fig. 2, each plate is provided with but one projection 19a oi' 21 and in this case the plates are only mutually held in position by the rod 23a when the battery is in upright position. So far as the projections are concerned-they are the same on each plate, but of course the plates of A unlike polarity-are oppositely turned.

Between the parts 6 and 7 of the jar and cover and extending over the top edge ofthe' jar there is a sealing compound 24 which is prevented from accidentally working out by the joint formed between the flange 5 and bead 11,- so that when the coveris put on4 with its offset flange 5 outside of the top of the jar therel is no danger of squeezing out thesealing compound although the cover supports the weight of the plates. Movably arranged in the bulge 3 is a ioat indicator, as balls 25 and 26, of appropriate specific gravity to respond in buoyancy to changes 'of density of the electrolyte. These balls While freely movable are retained'in the.

bulge by the edges of the electrode structure` long. In this Way any confusion in connect- .ing up a-number of cells is avoided and the 'cells may be connected by means of a single bolt or the like passed through the apertures 29 and 30 in the terminals and this is a simple, expeditious and safe, method of connecting up the cells.

Vhen the cell vis fully charged the specificgravity of the electrolyte is great so that both balls rise to the top of the bulge; This position of the balls indicates that the battery is fully charged* As soon as current is taken from the battery the specific gravity of the electrolyte is' not 'so great so that one of the balls drops and indicates that the battery is not fully charged. Vhen the bat tery is so far discharged that it is advisable to recharge it the specific gravity of the` electrolyte is not so great7 and both balls fall thus indicating that it is desirable to recharge the battery.' lt has been said that the plate structure does no turn or swing,

and v`this permits of its use for guiding the balls and 26, and also permits of the use of the depressions 2, When desirable.

'It will be obvious to those skilled` in the.l

art to which the invention relates that modifications may be made in detailsiof construe* tion' and arrangement Without departing from the spirit of the invention, which la`tter is not limited other than as required by the appended claims and the prior state of' the art.

N hat I claim is: y l. In a storage battery the combination of a jar, a cover, plates of one polarity sus.

pended from the cover from one side land .plates of the other polarity suspendedfrom the cover from the opposite side and all l said platesbeing narrower than the jar and provided with opposed depending hook-like feet, and a rod engaged by said feet and 'causing` the plates to mutually support each other against edge-Wise movement, substantially as described.

2. In a storage battery the combination of a jar, plates ofone polaritv suspended from one side thereof and plates of the other polarity suspended from the opposite side thereof and all said plates being narrower than the jar and provided with opposed depending feet,l and a rod engaged by said feet anl causing the plates to mutually support each other against edgewise' movement,

substantially as described.

BRUCE FORD. 

